Tim Smith :: Sunday School Leaders

Feb

Planning Evangelistic Events Through A Sunday School Class

By Tim Smith · Comments (1)

My birthday is next month. I look forward to my birthday because I know that my family will plan a party to celebrate my birthday. They always do this but not because of me. You’ve got to understand that my mother’s birthday is 3 days before mine and wife’s birthday is 3 day’s after mine! I’m always going to have a party because of their birthdays.

There would be a problem if my family planned the party but failed to inform me of the celebration. They would have the party but the reason for having the party would be absent. The same scenario usually occurs when a Sunday School class plans a special event. They have the event but they fail to invite the lost, unchurched or chronic absentee.

It is true that Sunday School classes need to plan more ministry projects away from the Sunday morning experience. One of those ministry projects can be evangelistic events. I also need to say that any special event planned by a church or a class can be turned into an evangelistic event.

In my experience I have found that the weakness is not in the events that are planned but in the fact that we fail to invite those that need to be reached. We have the party but we fail to invite the guest of honor.

The next challenge is that most church-people today have surrounded themselves with other church-people and they fail to identify those that are lost or unchurched. We need to be proactive in identifying those we want to and need to reach.

Please visit our website (ssog.gabaptist.org) and search for the Power of 10. Find the prospect discovery process. The prospect discovery process is a month long process that will challenge all the members of the class to identify those around them that are in need of Jesus. You can also watch a webinar that provides the many details of this process. On our website click on webinars and then click on previously recorded webinars. Scroll down and find the webinar on discovering prospects.

During the prospect discovery process each member will be challenged to identify those that are in need of Jesus from their family, neighbors, friends, co-workers, relatives and acquaintances. Each week a different relationship will be explored and the members will be asked to provide the names and contact information on those that they have identified. The first step in reaching these will be to begin praying for them by name and then to plan a special event to invite to attend.

Help your class begin to think about those that they know who need salvation. When you plan an event for your class make sure that you invite those that you’ve identified to the party!

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Dr. Tim S. Smith serves as the Specialist of the Sunday School and Open Group Ministries of the Georgia Baptist Convention. Visit their website at ssog.gabaptist.org for more information and other resources to aid your Sunday School.

Categories : Sunday School

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Jan

Focus on the Learners

By Tim Smith · Comments (1)

Too many Sunday School teachers focus on their teaching style instead of focusing on the various styles of learning of their members. If we teach with only style that we are confortable with we will miss out on truly making disciples.

There are many different learning styles and teachers need to know those styles of their members. If you know the learning styles of your members and plan your teaching based on those styles, I guarantee that the content of your Bible studies will improve.

Visual

A visual learner will be best taught if your teaching is seen. These type of learners love to take notes and fill in the blanks. They usually sit in the front of the class or near the teacher. Their dress and appearance is usually neat. If they are bored they will find something to watch. They love lessons with illustrations and language that is full of imagery. The use of colors will also aid in the process of learning.

Auditory

Those that are auditory learners enjoy hearing and listening to lessons. They are not concerned with what goes on in the front of the classroom. Their clothes may not be color or style coordinated but they can thoroughly explain their choices in attire. You will sometimes see them humming or even speaking to themselves and they often read aloud even when they are alone. They remember and learn by verbalizing the lesson to themselves.

Kinesthetic

These learners love to do and touch. They are very active will need to be near the door or an open area. They will communicate through gestures and the use of their hands. They will remember what is done but have difficulty remember the details of what has been said or seen. They love to tinker and will begin to move around when they are bored. They will rely on what they know or have experienced. The use of meaningful learning activities will aid these learners in their growth and development as a follower of Christ. These learners also appreciate physical encouragement like a handshake or a pat on the back or even a hug.

Did you recognize your learning style? As you are developing your Bible study for this coming week, try to remember these styles. Reflect on the members of your group and seek to develop a lesson that focuses on how they learn instead of merely focusing on your style of teaching.

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Categories : 31 Days to a Better Teacher, Teaching

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Dec

Simple Missional Sunday School Class

By Tim Smith · Comments (1)

A few weeks ago I got the chance to talk to some of our SBC International Missionaries via Skype. I was so broken by their response to one simple question I asked. “What can I do for you?”

Christmas time is all about us making lists of what we want as gifts. I wanted to do something for these great servants but their response was just to simple for me. All they wanted from me is that I pray for them.

I want your Sunday School class to begin to something very simple. Start praying for different missionary, by name, every month. Here are some links to find the names of our missionaries. Pray for them, email them, and talk to them.

www.namb.net/missionaries

www.imb.org/main/pray

Here is another way for your Sunday School class to become a missional group. A few months ago, the Research Services of the Georgia Baptist Convention purchased a service that would allow us to provide mailing lists to our churches. In other words, I could give them a street name and they would print me a mailing list of everyone on that street. I decided to use that on my street because my wife and one neighbor had begun attempting to reach our neighbors.

We now had a list of everyone and they began prayer walking the neighborhood. As they went through the neighborhood they used to list to pray for people by name! Later we went to visit. I’ve been able to join them a few nights and I’ve been privileged to share the gospel with some of my neighbors. My wife and one neighbor are now the unofficial chaplains for the neighborhood.

Why not contact your state convention and to discover if they have the same service available. If you are a Georgia Baptist church, why not give everyone in your Sunday School a list of all their neighbors and have them prayer walk.

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Categories : Mission, Sunday School

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Nov

The Leadership of the Sunday School Director

By Tim Smith · Comments (1)

The Sunday School director is the most influential lay-leader of the church. Charles Livingstone ties together both the responsibilities of the Sunday School director and the idea that those responsibilities cannot be fulfilled without investment in other leaders. Livingstone states, “Many thousands of persons today testify that one of the most positive influences on their lives has been the life of a godly and capable Sunday School director. The office is an opportunity for the investment of life in helping people.”^{^[1]}

A good Sunday School director is more concerned with people than with numbers. Now don’t misunderstand me; numbers are important and a good Sunday School director tracks enrollment, attendance, new members, contacts, etc. But the Sunday School director can not let numbers be all that the members of the church hear. I good Sunday School director will not only keep up with the numbers but also share success stories.

A good Sunday School director will seek to motivate the leaders of the Sunday School. Too many Sunday School directors are more interested in making sure that teachers like them instead of seeking to lead them. A Sunday School director is not going to motivate the workers by simply associating with them. The Sunday School director should an example but also verbally leading the leaders as well.

A good Sunday School director will equip the teachers and workers. There are many Sunday School directors that think their role is to get the chalk, chairs and other items for all the classes. That is all they do on Sunday is run around and ask if a teacher needs anything. If we are not prepared by Sunday morning it is too late to begin getting ready after we get to church on Sunday. The Sunday School director is to equip not just assist teachers.

A good Sunday School director is creative and open to new ideas. Too many directors are boxed in with ideas and the methods they have adopted. They say things like, “we’ve always done it this way” or “we’ve never done this way before”. Too many Sunday School directors just keep doing the same thing year after year.

A good Sunday School director will have a desire to grow their Sunday School. The Sunday School director that is going to make a difference looks for ways to grow the Sunday School instead of being so maintenance minded. Starting new classes, training new teachers, enrolling new members, sharing the gospel, etc.

[1]Charles R. Livingstone, Using the Sunday School to Reach People (Nashville: Convention Press, 1973), 36.

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Categories : Sunday School

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Nov

Pastoral Leadership of the Sunday School

By Tim Smith · Comments (1)

In our research on Sunday Schools we discovered a very interesting fact related to the leadership of a pastor. We found that 96% of all churches said that the leadership of the pastor was key to success of their Sunday School. It did not matter whether the church was growing or not but all expressed the need for the pastor to lead the way in Sunday School. The real issue was whether the pastor was providing the needed leadership.

Thom Rainer in Effective Evangelistic Churches said, “… effective Sunday Schools had strong and vocal support from the pastor. Indeed, it was often the pastor who spoke most often about the importance of Sunday School. He did not leave the emphasis in the hands of a minister of education or a Sunday School Director alone. The pastor typically was actively involved in training, recruiting, and promotion in Sunday School.”

If the Sunday School is to be a strategy to accomplish the Great Commission, the pastor must assume leadership. The members of the church will usually make the greatest commitment to that which the pastor gives greatest emphasis. Lay-people will usually commit to serve and even sacrifice to what they see as their pastor’s priority. They must know and understand that the pastor is committed to importance of Sunday School.

Let me suggest ten ways for a pastor to demonstrate/express his leadership and commitment to Sunday School.

1. Proclaim to the church your conviction about Sunday School.

2. Give a brief, weekly Sunday School report before worship begins.

3. Have a commissioning service for Sunday School leaders each year.

4. Incorporate Sunday School testimonies into the worship.

5. Regularly write about Sunday School in your newsletters.

6. Personally enlist, train, and meet regularly with the Sunday School Director.

7. Develop a Sunday School Planning Team.

8. Preach occasionally on Sunday School themes.

9. Seek ways to increase your personal expertise.

10. Make Sunday School leader training a priority in your church through the calendar and budget.

The pastor’s leadership role in the Sunday School could be summarized this way. If leaders are lacking or untrained in the Sunday School, then the pastor must be the key leader of the Sunday School. Once leaders are developed and trained the pastor becomes the chief cheerleader for the Sunday School. If the church is struggling the creation of momentum will require “hands-on” leadership from the pastor in the initial stages no matter how many leaders are presently serving.

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Categories : Leadership, Sunday School

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